Anthony Smith is no longer worrying about working his way toward another UFC title fight.
After dropping three of his last four, including a brutal third-round knockout loss against Khalil Rountree in his last outing, ‘Lionheart’ will look to get back into the win column when he heads to Rio for a clash with Vitor Petrino at UFC 301 on May 4.
Smith’s first and only opportunity at UFC gold came against then-light heavyweight champion Jon Jones at UFC 225 in 2019. The Corpus Christi native came up short against ‘Bones,’ suffering a decisive unanimous decision defeat at the hands of the MMA GOAT. Since then, Smith has been desperately trying to fight his way back into the title picture.
At one point, he appeared to be on his way, winning three straight against Devin Clark, Jimmy Crute, and Ryan Spann. Unfortunately, back-to-back losses against Magomed Ankalaev and Johnny Walker knocked him back down the ladder.
Appearing on a recent episode of Submission Radio, Smith suggested that his dream of becoming a UFC champion had prevented him from focusing on the task at hand — something he’s been working to change with his latest fight camp.
“There’s a possibility that last loss might have taken the title out of reach,” Smith said. “That may be a little bit dramatic, but it’s definitely further away than I want it to be for sure, and sitting down just trying to figure out what the hell is happening — the last one’s easy. I know what happened. I took a fight on almost no notice and swung for the fences to see what was gonna happen. It is what it is, but I think the title has blinded me. I think it’s created a blind spot for me that I haven’t noticed until recently.
“I think I’ve been so concerned with it and so obsessed with it. I go into these fights and — not that I’m looking past anybody — I have this plan in my head where I’m trying to control everything. Like I’m trying to beat this guy, then I’ll beat this guy. Maybe I’ll call this guy out and maybe this guy will win. It’s all planned out in my head and it’s f*cking blinded me. It’s making me a worse fighter.
“And so I just decided that I’m done worrying about it. I’m done being so obsessed and consumed with the idea of getting another title fight so me and my coaches made a deal that we’re just gonna take it one at a time and focus 100% on that person and pretend the next day doesn’t exist.”
Anthony Smith Contemplated Retirement Following His Loss to Khalil Rountree
With yet another loss on his resume and the light heavyweight title seemingly out of reach, Anthony Smith had to question whether or not he wanted to continue sacrificing his time and body for the sport.
After digging deep for an answer within himself, ‘Lionheart’ realized that despite all the setbacks, he still loves to fight and that is a more than good enough reason to keep going.
“It’s a conversation that has to be had,” Smith said. “I wasn’t like, ‘I’m retiring. I’m done, I can’t do this anymore,’ but sometimes, what’s it worth? Those are the kinds of questions. Am I willing to continue sacrificing all that I sacrifice when I don’t really have to to keep chasing this thing? Do I love it enough the same way I loved it before? The answer is yes. I still love fighting, but when we take the title [away], my first initial thought was, ‘F*ck. I might not f*cking get one.’ Then the next feeling is, ‘Well f*ck it. If I’m not gonna get one, what are we doing this for?’
“And the answer is because I love doing it. I love fighting. I love training. I love the camaraderie. I love having a purpose. And then that goes into, ‘Well what’s the problem?’ The problem is I’m getting older and I’m not adjusting to that. My speed is still there, but I’ve never really been a crazy athletic fighter. My power is still there, but there are some things affecting me that may not be noticeable to the naked eye, but as you break it down from my coach’s perspective, they see it.
“So now we’re just fixing things. We’re just adjusting to it.”
Watch the full interview below:
